Mistrunner 4 - Chapter 26 - The Enemy (Patreon)

Bit by bit, we’re losing her. I see it every time she comes back from one of her missions. They’re sucking the humanity right out of her. We both know it, too. She can feel it happening. But neither of us can see another way.

Patrick Ward

“That looks intimidating,” Patrick said as he stared at the holographic display in the center of the room. All around us, Dingyts worked at various terminals, coordinating various teams who were engaged in various missions. At the same time, more gnomes raced through the room on one task or another, making the entire room feel chaotic. But I knew there was a pattern to it all. Alistaris and the other Dingyts were organized right down to the smallest detail, and as such, the chaos was more illusion than reality.

The holographic display showed a huge ship that, to the naked eye, rivaled the Bazaar in size. However, it was much sleeker, and it was bristling with cannons.

“That’s a Gomari warship. Class DST-X-109. It’s called Infinite Conquest,” Alistaris explained. “And it is well named.”

I studied the ship. From an aesthetic standpoint, it was quite striking. Dark blue, with gold filigree decorating the nose, the ship’s hull was sharply pointed, and four symmetrical wings extended from the middle to end in circular modules that I suspected were used as additional housing for the crew.

“What makes it so special?” I asked.

“Everything.”

“Elaborate,” I prompted.

“Its armor is second to none, making it a perfect platform from which to launch an invasion. More importantly – especially to you – it was created by a race of mystics who’d never been integrated into the system. So, it is more resistant to your abilities and skills than anything else you have or likely ever will see,” Alistaris explained.

“Including Ghosts?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“Damn.”

I didn’t have much context for what mystics were capable of. I’d only met a handful, and I’d only gotten a glimpse of the way they fought. However, I knew enough to recognize that they were vastly different, in terms of the nature of their power, than anyone else I’d gone up against. My own power, which was still less developed than I wanted it to be, was a testament to that. I was no mystic, but I’d been told that I was beginning to walk that path. My experiences supported that notion.

“The only saving grace is that its inherent combat capability trends more toward defense than overt destruction,” he said. “However, it does feature a fleet of smaller fighter ships that are likely more advanced than anything this world has to offer.”

“What are you doing about it? You’ve got your Alliance backing you up, right? Don’t they have a warship that can counteract this Infinite Conquest?” Patrick asked.

Alistaris shook his head. “My organization is not committed to this planet’s defense,” he said. “It’s a cost-benefit situation, and with Earth, the cost of fending off the Gamori Confederation far outweighs any benefit we might see to our overall efforts. What you see here is the extent of what we can offer.”

“So, just enough help to give us hope, but not enough to actually do anything,” Patrick remarked. Normally, his personality was as steady as anyone I’d ever met, but woe be unto anyone who truly made him angry. “Great.”

“I’ll remind you that I am here,” Alistaris said, his voice even. I knew him well enough to recognize the underlying anger that placid tone camouflaged, though. “I am in the same situation as the natives of this world. The Gamori Confederation will kill me the same as all of you. It is no different from my subordinates. Everyone here is risking their lives for a planet that is not their own. I suggest you acknowledge that sacrifice, even if you don’t respect it.”

Patrick clenched his fist, but quickly subdued his own annoyance by saying, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Think nothing of it.”

I could understand Patrick’s irritation. The fleet of ships we’d seen upon arrival was impressive, but not in the context of a planet-wide battle. And given the size of the Infinite Conquest, I suspected that the fleet it housed was far more extensive and exponentially better suited to the task of fighting a global war.

In that context, it was difficult to feel any level of appreciation for what looked like the bare minimum the Alliance had offered.

Still, I wasn’t going to let myself get caught up in thinking like that. I’d known all along that if Earth was going to survive, it would be on the backs of its native population. The aliens – even Alistaris and his organization – only wanted to exploit the planet for their own means. For the Ark Alliance, that meant they could fight their enemies on a battlefield so far removed from their own territory that its destruction would be meaningless. Perhaps they also cared about our resources, and maybe a few were like Alistaris and actually cared about humanity, but the fact was that our planet was just a convenient setting for their war.

I needed to keep that in mind, lest I become blinded to the reality of Earth’s circumstances.

“How many enemies are up there? And what’s their relative power level? Also, what species are we dealing with?” I asked.

Alistaris’s answers were more than a little disturbing. He claimed there were at least a hundred thousand warriors inside, but that wasn’t including the support personnel or crew. On top of that, he informed us that the warriors included a dozen mystics, each one on the level of a full-fledged Templar. Finally, the population of the ship – which was more of a spacefaring city than a mere means of conveyance from one point to another – was varied enough that trying to classify them by species was largely pointless.

“So, what do we do?” I asked.

“The presence of mystics opens a new possibility,” Alistaris said. “You have some relationship with the local Templars, right?”

“How do you know that?”

“It’s my job to know things, Miss Braddock,” he stated.

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“You’re aware of most of our surveillance. Leave it at that.”

I sighed. He and the other members of the Ark Alliance who’d come to Earth had been watching me for a long time. Well before our first meeting, they’d known who I was and had been keeping tabs on me. So, it wasn’t a surprise that they knew about my meetings with various Templars like Freddy.

“Fine. Where do I find them? I haven’t exactly kept in touch with the ones I know,” I said. There had been a Temple back in Nova City, but I’d never had occasion to visit. Not that I could have without significant subterfuge, given that it had been located in one the affluent Lakeview district. That alone had kept me from satisfying my curiosity about the Templars. “And do you honestly think they’ll help us?”

“That depends.”

“On what?” asked Patrick, inserting himself into the discussion.

“On how persuasive she is,” Alistaris answered. “Templars are not our allies. There is always tension between the Ark Alliance and their organization. However, on occasion, we have joined forces to combat rogue elements. They see themselves as peacekeepers dedicated to opposing other, less scrupulous mystic factions. So, there is a chance that they will join our cause, if only as long as it takes to defeat their counterparts.”

“And why don’t you go? If the Alliance has a history of –”

The Dingyt commander interrupted Patrick by saying, “I am not my organization, and in this instance, I would make for a poor representative for the Ark Alliance. I have history with the Templars.”

“And we’re supposed to just waltz in there and get them on our side?” Patrick asked.

“Essentially.”

Patrick looked like he wanted to respond, but he was dumbstruck by Alistaris’s confirmation. So, I cut in, saying, “Fine. Just tell us where to go, and we’ll do what needs to be done. If they help, they help. If not, well…I’ll just have to do it all myself.”

“This is a much more extensive threat than the Pacificians.”

“And I’m a lot more dangerous, now.”

“Not that dangerous,” Alistaris pointed out.

I shrugged. “We’ll just have to see, I guess. We’ve got a short span here. We need to get this done before the quarantine lifts, right?” I asked. “So, we don’t have any time to waste. Just send me the coordinates, and we’ll take it from there.”

“Very well,” Alistaris said. Then, he followed through, sending me a packet containing a brief summary of the location as well as its coordinates. A glance told me that it was half a world away on a volcanic island on the edge of the planet’s largest ocean. “Be wary, though. The Templars are a rigid people for whom respect is a core tenet of what amounts to a religion. If you offend them, you will bring the weight of their entire order down on your head.”

“Don’t insult the space wizards,” I said, snapping my fingers. “Gotcha.”

“They are not…space wizards.”

“Close enough,” I said with a shrug. “Patrick agrees. Right Pick?”

“They’re not…not space wizards, I guess.”

“See, wholehearted agreement,” I said with a grin. I didn’t really feel it, though. Instead, most threads of my mind were focused on exactly how dire Earth’s situation was. If the Infinite Conquest was as powerful as Alistaris had claimed, it had the capacity to end the war before it really got started. A hundred thousand powerful alien warriors made for a force that would sweep through Earth without any trouble at all.

That frightened me, though I had no intention of letting Alistaris see my fear. He probably knew, anyway. He wasn’t stupid, after all.

“What happens when we get them on our side?” Patrick asked.

“We integrate them into our plans,” the Dingyt answered.

“Which you still haven’t shared.”

“Operational security.”

“You keep saying that,” I pointed out. “What do you think is going to happen? It’s not like we’re going to go running to the people who want nothing more than to kill us. They wouldn’t believe a word we’d say anyway. And besides, they want to destroy our planet. Neither Patrick nor I want to see that happen.”

Alistaris’s eyes shifted to his subordinates, and I got his meaning. He wasn’t afraid that Patrick or I would share his secrets and ruin the battle plan. Instead, he was worried about his own people. Paranoia was probably a good thing, given that the Gamori Confederation would almost assuredly make a lucrative offer for any actionable information.

It was a poignant reminder of how overmatched we really were.

“The good thing is that, with the combination of the Infinite Conquest’s arrival as well as our efforts over the past month, our enemies have consolidated. Anyone who isn’t part of the Confederation is preparing to leave,” Alistaris said. “Or they’re already dead.”

“That’s a good thing, right?”

“It is. It means that instead of fighting against a hundred or more different forces, all with wildly different agendas, we can focus on a single enemy,” he said. “They will have a plan for subjugating the planet, though. It won’t be down to a ground war. It’ll be something else. I have people looking into it, but we’ve yet to find anything else of note.”

“Fair enough. So, for now, Patrick and I need to head to…Japan,” I said, reading the name of the island off my packet. “We’ll try to get the Templars on our side, but what happens if they refuse?”

“What do you mean?”

“If they’re not with us, they’re against us, aren’t they?”

“Are you proposing to kill the Templars?”

“Uh…yeah? Maybe. Why? Is that such a bad thing? I mean, I liked Freddy, and those others saved my life once. But if they’re humans, and they won’t step up against something like this, they’re better off dead.”

“You will not do anything of the sort.”

“What? Why can’t I –”

“Never mind that if you tried, you would get a rude awakening as to your actual place in the hierarchy of the universe,” he stated. “But you would bring the Templars down on us at the same time.”

“Thought they were enemies of these enemy mystics…”

“They are. But they will not tolerate attacks on their temples. You mess with the Templars, and you’ll find out why everyone in the universe is terrified of letting mystics run free.”

“Fine.”

“I need to hear you say it, Miss Braddock. Tell me you won’t antagonize or attack them.”

“I promise. I’ll be a good girl.”

“I am not reassured,” he stated.

“Don’t worry. I’ll keep Patrick in line,” I said.

“I wasn’t…ah…never mind. I see that you were joking. Poorly.”

“Ouch.”

“It really will be fine,” Patrick said. “We’re not going to start a war with the space wizards.”

Alistaris just shook his head at that. Afterwards, he took a few minutes to ensure that we knew where we were going before he filled us in on the details of what the other teams were up to. At present, they were conducting raids on various Rift mining operations, where they were seizing anything they could get their hands on. In addition, another team had been tasked with assaulting a few key resource gathering locations.

“That reminds me – you still owe me my cut from the Pacifician mine,” I said. After I’d killed the majority of the androids on Earth, the remainder had abandoned their mine. I’d passed it on to Alistaris with the understanding that I would get a percentage of any profits they managed to generate.

“That ore is going to building weapons to defend your planet,” he said. “High quality ammunition is not cheap to make.”

“Touche, I guess. But you still owe me. I expect that when all this is over, we’ll settle up.”

“You’ll get everything you deserve,” he said. “My people are keeping copious records.”

“You sounded really creepy when you said that, Al. Just letting you know,” I said. “A more suspicious person might assume that you’re going to try to screw me out of what I’m owed. Or kill me. But given my experiences with aliens so far, that wouldn’t be so surprising. I think you know how that kind of thing usually ends up going, though, so I’ll just choose to believe that I’m being unreasonable.”

That definitely wasn’t the response he expected. In truth, I didn’t really think he intended to double-cross me. Not because he didn’t have the capacity, but rather, because he didn’t really have much to gain from it. If he’d wanted me dead, he would have just left me on the moon.

After that, Patrick and I excused ourselves and returned to the Leviathan. As always when I came in contact with Alistaris or the other gnomes, I spent the next few hours going over the ship with a fine-toothed comb. I found no trackers or listening devices, though, so I reasoned that we were finally getting past the distrusting phase of our relationship.

Once our privacy had been assured, we took off, and Patrick guided the ship a couple of hundred miles away before he set it down. There, we settled in to discuss what had happened. As far as either of us could tell, everything Alistaris had said was accurate, which did not bode well for Earth’s survival. Still, we had a plan of attack, and that was all that mattered. Hopefully, we’d figure the rest out along the way.

In the meantime, we set off toward Japan. The trip required us to cross the ocean, which was a dangerous prospect even in the best of times. However, to my surprise, we managed to make the crossing without any major incidents. Sure, we were assaulted by a flock of giant, predatory birds, and we also had to dodge a series of weaponized waterspouts that had originated with a pod of whales. But other than that, the trip was uneventful, and about six hours after we’d set out, we saw the island that was our destination on the horizon.

The island itself was mountainous, but the landscape was dominated by a single enormous, snowcapped peak. As Patrick piloted the Leviathan closer, I saw a walled city at the base of the mountain, but that was not our destination. Instead, we circled the island, coming in from the north. Soon enough, we saw our goal.

Strangely enough, the town was not circled by a wall. Nor did it have a Mist shield. Instead, it was entirely open. The architecture was all sweeping roofs and wooden structures, but what truly impressed me was the expansive gardens that seemed even more ubiquitous than the buildings.

A few white-robed men and women looked up at our approach. On the surface, they didn’t look terribly extraordinary. Even with Observation flared, I saw nothing to suggest that they were dangerous. None of them were even armed. And yet, when I looked upon them, a sense of deep unease spread through my mind. For a long moment, I couldn’t place why I felt that way, but then it hit me.

“They don’t have auras.”

“What?” asked Patrick.

“These people, they don’t have Mist auras,” I said. It was then that I began to understand one of the things that set Templars apart.